Anger in America-2008-2017

PhotographerChris Riess

PrizeHonorable Mention

City/CountrySanta Monica, United States

Photo Date2008-2017

Technical InfoRollei GX

Entry Description

We started this project eight years ago because we had an interest in rage and disappointment. As an alternative to introspection, we turned our focus to strangers and challenged ourselves to see what these feelings look like both visually and in written word. We explored the subject of anger through a universal and polarizing gesture and after every shot, we asked our subject to write down what they were thinking in their own handwriting. The first photograph was taken in 2008 and the last one was taken one week after President Trump was sworn in. These are not just portraits, they are stories. We didn’t just ask to take a random picture, we asked for intimacy and truth. The answers, statements, and thoughts reveal what makes us unique but more often, they communicate what we have in common.